Mexico Is Bracing for Tariffs, Eager for Its President’s Response

On Thursday morning, President Claudia Sheinbaum of Mexico plans to speak with President Trump, in a last-ditch attempt to avert the 25 percent tariffs that Mr. Trump imposed this week on her country’s exports, which would devastate its economy.

But already, Mexico is bracing for impact.

The tariffs, according to banks and business leaders, are likely to cause American companies that make products in Mexico to leave the country, in line with Mr. Trump’s stated goal of pressuring those manufacturers to relocate to the United States. That could lead to the loss of tens of thousands of Mexican jobs, and a contraction of the gross domestic product of more than 2 percent.

By Wednesday, Ms. Sheinbaum seemed to have recovered from the shock that Mr. Trump was imposing tariffs, which Mexican officials, just days earlier, had appeared confident they could head off in negotiations with the Trump administration. She had shifted into crisis mode, calling this a “definitive moment” for the country and drawing a comparison to the devastating Covid-19 pandemic.

Yes, Ms. Sheinbaum acknowledged, pain would come: Around 80 percent of Mexico’s exports go to the United States. But Mexico had withstood worse. The peso dipped on Tuesday, the day the tariffs took effect, but not nearly as much as it had during the pandemic, she said.

She called for patience, suggesting that things could still change, and struck a defiant tone, saying that Mexico was not about to take tariffs lying down.

“Mexicans are brave and resilient — the people of Mexico are strong, and our economy is doing well,” she said, adding that “there will be no submission.” If need be, she said, Mexico will build its trading relationships with “Canada and other countries” to compensate for a loss of U.S. business.